All in Jesus
When Jesus entered our world, he came all the way down. He lived no middle-class life. He was invited into the places of power only to be condemned. His withstood the full weight of temptation but never gave in. His sufferings before the cross were intense and profound.
Here’s Christ’s kingdom offer: all our striving and trying for all his finished and accomplished.
Here’s the question: will we hold onto the status quo or will we make room for Jesus and join the wedding celebration?
We are all—everyone us—diagnosed with a sickness unto death. And the sinners and tax collectors he sat among saw it. They saw their sickness. So they welcomed the Physician. But the Pharisees didn’t.
In this world, abuse of power comes as no surprise. That’s why when Jesus comes, his use of power is so surprising. With all the power in the universe, he uses it to lay down his life as a ransom for many.
Jesus is not only the Sage we need; he’s the Savior we need. The wisdom of God is more than just right thinking; it’s the glories of his righteousness and the wonders of his love.
As he began the most important work the world has ever seen, Jesus invited a group of complicated sinners to come along. Discipleship was important to Jesus. His choosing of them, his investment in them, and his deployment of them was the way he changed the world.
Jesus was the smartest man to ever walk this earth. He’s still the smartest man alive. So much of his recorded teachings have far more Old Testament allusions than we modern Gentile readers can fathom. As we were studying the account of David and Goliath in our Bible study at church, I saw David’s words in 1 Samuel 17:34 with new eyes. There’s more than a hint of Jesus there, and Jesus knew it.
Jesus was asking them a simple question: how far does God’s grace go? How far does his love stretch? How deep does it plunge? To the worst sinner? To the deepest depravity? To the best Pharisee? To the smartest scribe?
